Photo: Drummondville defenseman Ryan Culkin, signed to an entry-level contract by Calgary in March, led Voltigeurs blueliners with 11 points in 11 QMJHL playoff games (courtesy of Richard Wolowicz/Getty Images)

Although the Calgary Flames did not make the playoffs for a fifth consecutive year, most of the prospects in the system were involved in postseason play.

Fatigue is something you can expect in any hockey player at the close of a hockey season. In an Olympic year, the wearinenss is even more visible than after any other campaign, resulting in many stars sitting out the IIHF World Championship tournament contested in May of each year.

Photo: Emile Poirier, Calgary’s 22nd overall pick in 2013, led Gatineau in goals (43) and points (87) in 2013-14 before debuting in the AHL with Abbotsford (courtesy of Francois Laplante/FreestylePhoto/Getty Images)

The 2013-14 season provided a bright glimpse of what the future holds for the Calgary Flames. With the emerging amount of talent in the pipeline, the Flames are getting stronger in their development.

Hockey's Future presents the top group of the 2014 Spring NHL Team Rankings. The teams are ranked by the overall quality of their prospect pool as voted on by the HF staff. For reference, the top five prospects are listed. To be eligible, a prospect must meet HF's prospect criteria. The rankings are done twice a year, with this edition being an update to the Fall rankings. Each team's Fall ranking is listed in parenthesis next to their current ranking.

Photo: Colorado Avalanche forward Nathan MacKinnon led all NHL rookies in scoring during the 2013-14 regular season, and even led all NHL scorers during the 2014 NHL playoffs until the Avalanche were eliminated in the first round (courtesy of Michael Martin/NHLI via Getty Images)

Colorado Avalanche forward Nathan MacKinnon had a huge second half of the season to pull away from the field in the Calder Trophy race. His performance in the 2014 NHL playoffs was simply the cherry on top of a great rookie season.